It is well known that bicyclists often desire to bring various articles with them as they travel on their bicycles. Such articles include tire repair kits, bicycle accessories, light clothing for variable weather, food snacks, etc. For competitive bicyclists that endeavor to travel long distances at competitive speeds, it is extremely desirable that bicycle bag support structures be as light and as uncomplicated as possible. Many structures are known in the art for efficiently securing a utility bag to a bicycle.
For example, a “Seat Pack Assembly” is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,566,617 that issued on Jan. 28, 1986 to Jackson which includes a U-shaped mounting bracket that receives a custom made bag. The mounting bracket, however, must be screwed to components of a bicycle seat using complicated clamps, plates, screws, nuts, etc. Upon fastening the serpentine bracket to the seat, the bracket may be squeezed and then inserted into a pocket of a custom designed bag, which is also strapped to a seat post of the bicycle. While requiring no frame struts to a wheel axle, the assembly of Jackson nonetheless involves time consuming, heavy, complicated and costly components to be effectively utilized. Similarly, a “Cantilevered Article Carrier” is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,643,343 that issued on Feb. 17, 1987 to Goldman et al. which also includes a bracket secured to a seat with clamps, nuts, bolts, etc. The bracket extends rearward from the seat to be mechanically secured to a plastic hinge-shaped bag frame that supports an encompassing fabric bag. The bag is also secured to the seat post by a “Velcro” strap. Like Jackson, however, the carrier of Goldman et al. requires time-consuming mechanical brackets that may vibrate off, and that are heavy and costly to make and use.
Another and more recent “Mounting Device for Bicycle Accessories” is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,127,563 that issued on Jul. 7, 1992 to Chan et al. The device of Chan et al. includes a cleat secured to a bag frame material within a bag and the cleat projects out of the custom designed bag. The cleat includes wings that engage frame bars of the seat of the bicycle while the bag is also secured against sliding by a “Velcro” strap to the seat post. Like Jackson and Goldman, et al, the device of Chan et al. includes complicated, costly and heavy hardware, and includes a custom made fabric bag of limited size that must be mated to the complicated cleat and bag frame. A somewhat simpler design of a bike rack is shown in a “Cantilevered Carrier Rack for Bicycle” disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,395,017 that issued on Mar. 7, 1995 to Naughton. The carrier of Naughton simply includes a support arm extending from the seat post over the rear bicycle tire. The carrier also utilizes a seat post abutment fork and a “rail hanger” secured between the support arm and frame rails of the seat to secure the support arm. While Naughton's carrier is less complicated than most known bicycle carrier racks, it still involves the cost and weight of the rail hanger and abutment fork components, and the rail hanger is susceptible to vibrating and possible dislocation, etc.
Accordingly, there is a need for a bicycle rack that is efficient to manufacture and use, that is light, durable and can be readily secured to and removed from a bicycle.